Container and method of forming same



April 24, 1934. c MacCHESNEY CONTAINER AND METHOD OF FORMING SAME Filed May 18, 1931 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 P w WM PM llll Patented Apr. 24, 1934 3 OFFICE CONTAINER AND METHGD OF FORMING SAME Chester M. Macfihesney, Chicago, IlL, assignor to Acme Steel Company, Chicago, ill., a corporation of Illinois Application May 18, 1931,8erial No. 538,094

15 Claims.

This invention relates to improvements in containers and methods of forming the same and its purpose is to provide a container, adapted for use as a butter tub or the like, having a 5 cover comprising annular rim which is adapted to form a detachable interlocking engagement with a hoop passing around the container. It has been the usual practice in the prior art to secure covers on butter tubs by means of metal clips which are nailed to the cover and to the side of the tub but this method of fastening is objectionable because of its inconvenience, the likelihood of contamination of the butter by nails passing through the wall of the tub, and the difficulty of again securing the cover in place after it has once been removed. Efforts have heretofore been made to secure covers upon tubs without the use of nails but the tubs which have been provided for this purpose .have not been such as to permit the replacement of the cover after it has once been removed or they have not been of such construction that any one of a group of covers might be applied to any one of a large number of tubs, because of variations in manufacture.

The principal object of the present invention is to provide an improved container having a cover provided with an annular metal rim which interlocks with a metal hoop passing around the upper part of the tub. Another object is to provide an improved method of forming a container according to which a metal band is formed to provide an annular projection which engages an annular groove in the tub, and with an annular shoulder Which is detachably engaged by inwardly projecting parts carried by a metallic rim attached to the cover. A further object of the invention is'to provide a container having a cover adapted to seat upon a tub with an an- 40 nular metallic rim attached to the cover and provided with inwardly projecting parts of peculiar formation adapted to facilitate the removal of the cover from interlocking engagement with a hoop secured to the tub. Another object is to provide an improved form of reenforcing hoop for a tub. Other objects relate to various features of construction and arrangement, and to details of the method, which will appear more fully hereinafter.

The nature of the invention will be understood from the following specification. taken with the accompanying drawings, in which the improved method is illustrated in connection with one form of the improved container. In the drawings,

Fig. 1 shows a perspective view of a butter tub or other container embodying the features of the present invention;

Fig. 2 is an enlarged side elevation of the upper portion of the container illustrated in Fig. 1, illustrating the cover and rim in the process of J9 being removed from the tub;

Fig. 3 is a perspective View of a portion of the uppermost hoop which is secured around the tub;

Fig. 4 is a perspective view of a portion of the metal band from which the rim of the cover is formed;

Fig. 5 is a perspective View of a portion of the rim in an intermediate stage of its manufacture; .0

Fig. 6 is a perspective view of a portion of the completed rim;

Fig. 7 is a vertical section taken on the line 7-7 of Fig. 6;

Fig. 8 is a vertical section taken on the line 8-8 of Fig. 6;

Fig. 9 is a horizontal section taken on the line 99 of Fig. 6;

Fig. 10 is a vertical section through the upper edge portion of the container, showing the interlocking of the rim with the uppermost hoop and showing the manner of inserting a screw driver or other tool to pry the rim out of interlocking engagement with the hoop; and

Fig. 11 is a sectional view similar to that of Fig. 10, showing the rim after it has been pried out of interlocking engagement with the hoop.

The invention is illustratedas being embodied in 'a container comprising a'tub or vessel 15 having an annular upwardly flared wall formed by a plurality of wooden staves 16. The lower ends of these staves engage the outer edge of the circular bottom Wall of the tub and are secured in this relationship by a surrounding hoop 17 which may have a bead 17 around its upper edge and an inwardly extending flange around its lower edge to underlie the lower ends of the staves. At points between the upper and lower ends of the staves, they are surrounded by a pair of similar metal hoops 18' which are preferably provided with beads -18 around their lower edges and which are driven onto the upwardly flared wall of the tub from the lower wall thereof until they have a tight engagement therewith. During the driving of these hoops onto the tub, the metal thereof is adapted to stretch around the upper edge of the hoop to permit it to conform to the flare of the tub. These features of construction do not in themselves constitute a part of the present invention.

The invention resides more particularly in the method by which the circular wooden cover 19 is secured in position on the tub and for this purpose the tub is provided around its upper edge with an annular metal hoop 20 which has the form illustrated particularly in Figs. 3, l and 11. This hoop 20 is formed by taking an elongated strip of sheet metal, having considerable stiffness and some ductility, and operating upon it by suitable dies and the like to impart to it the irregular formation shown in the drawings, where it is illustrated as having a centrally located inwardly extending projection 20 of U-shaped cross-section, thus forming an annular groove 20 on the outer side of the hoop, bounded on its upper side by the annular outwardly extending projection 20 and on its lower side by the annular outwardly extending projection 20 From the projections 20 and 20 the metal of thehoop flares upwardly and downwardly, respectively, to form the edges 20 which are adapted to lie in close contact with the wall of the tub. when the hoop is in position thereon. The annular wall of the tub, formed by the staves 16, is provided a short distance below the upper edge thereof with an annular groove 21 and after the metal band having. the irregular contour, shown in Fig. 3, has been formed, the ends thereof are secured together by riveting, spot welding and the like, to form the annular hoop 20 which is driven upwardly over the flaring wall of the tub from the bottom thereof until the inwardly extending projection 20 snaps into engagement with the annular groove 21. The hoop 20. may preferably be applied by pressing the staves of the tub inward-.

ly to-reduce the cross-section of the tub temporarily while the hoop 20 is being applied so that when this pressure is released,.the' staves will expand to their normal positions and thus cause the annular projection 20 to assume an interlocking engagement with the groove 21. When' in this-position, the upperedge 20 of the hoop 20 lies substantially flush with the upper edges of the staves and the lower edge 20 lies in close contactwith the annular'wall of the tub, as shown in Fig. 10. The annular projection 20 of the hoop preferably extends outwardly to a lesser extent than the lowermost projection 20 The cover 19, formed preferably of wood, is

- adaptedto seat upon'the upper ends of thestaves 18, as. shown in Fig. 10, and it may overlap the upper edge of the hoop 20. The cover is provided around itsouter edge' with an annular groove l9 bounded on itsupperside by an annular shoulder l9 having a diameter somewhat less than that of the lowerpart 19of the'cover which directly engages the tub. The cover'is provided'belowthe groove 19 with. a downwardly and outwardly flaring annular surface 19 These parts are provided for the purpose of forming an interlocking engagement with the annular metal rim'22 which is also adapted to interlock with the metal hoop 20'. This rim 22is formed from anelongated flat strip of sheet metal 23, illustrated in Fig. 4. This strip of metal isprovided along its upper edge with an inwardly extending inclined flange 22*- provided with. a' series of transverse corrugat ons 22 which' maybe formed in theupper edge of the band beforethis part is bent to-form the inclined flange; After the flange 22 and. the bead 22 have been formed on the band 23, as illustrated in Fig. 5, the portionof the band which lies below the=inclined;flange-22 is operated upon to form a series of transversegrooves 22K wh? ch are formed by compressing the body of the metal band/as well as the bead 22, at intervals, to form the outwardly extending body projections or corrugations 22 which have a gradual outward flare from the upper part of the band to the lower edge thereof. 'As a result of the compression of the bead 22 at intervals, there are formed a series of inwardly extending projections or teeth 22 formed by those parts of the bead 22 which have not been compressed and which lie between the corrugations 22 The hand then has the completed form shown in Fig. 6 and a suitable length thereof is bent into annular form and the ends thereof secured together by rivets, spot welding or the like to form the completed annular rim 22-which is applied to the cover 19 by pressing it downwardly over the cover with sufficient pressure to cause the annular inclined flange 22 to snap over the" annular shoulder 19 of the cover into interlocking engagement with the annular groove 19 of the cover, as shown in Fig. 10. The transverse corrugation of thefiange 22e-permits sufficient expansion of the annular: flange 22% to permit this flange to be snapped over'the shoulder 19 on the cover and, when the rim. is in place; the flange 22 lies in contact with the annular inclined surface 19 of the cover; The body por:- tion of the rim 22 then depends below the lower' edge of the cover 19 with the projections 22e-exe tending inwardly from its lower edge.

The circular cover 19, with theirim. 22'1attached' thereto, is applied to the tub Y bypassing the lower part of the rim. downwardly overithefupperi portion of. the hoop 20 until the rounded surfaces of the projections 22. on the rim: engageth'e-upper inclined annular'surface of. the projection 20 on. the hoop. Then, upon applying furtherpressure, the rim 22. expands sufficiently to permit the projections 22. to snap over the annular projection 229' 20 of the hoop withthe'annular groove 21 inwthet tub, the hoop 20 has a definitelo'cation on everytub; ata predetermined distance below the upper edge thereof, and the rim 22 is so'formed. that the inwardly extending. projections 22 thereof are-located at predetermined'distances below the lower surface of the cover 19. This predetermined" relationship is effected by properly locating the grooves 21 and 19 in the tub and the'cover, re' spectively, and, even though there-besome' slight variation as between different tubs and covers of a series, the teeth or projections 22 0f any rim will nevertheless form an interlocking engagement with the groove 22 of the hoop appliedto any tub so that there is no necessity of selecting any particular cover forapplication to any particular tub.

Since. the annular groove. 20 in the hoop has.

a somewhat greater vertical dimension than the vertical dimension of those parts of the annular bead on the rim which form the projections 22 some variation from .the preferred predetermined relative locations of the shoulder 20. andiprojections 22 is permitted without interfering with the interlocking engagement of. the projections with.

the annular groove 20 and, at the same time, sufficient space is provided in the groove.2.0'P, below The cover is then securedi the lower edge of the rim 22, to permit the insertion of a screw driver or other tool 24, as shown in Fig. 10, for the purpose of detaching the rim from the tub. When it is desired to remove the cover, the tool 24 is inserted into the groove 20 beneath the lower edge of the rim and then, upon pressing downwardly upon the handle of the tool, as shown in Fig. 2, the lower edge of the rim may be pried upwardly over the projection 20 of the hoop 20. When this has been effected at one point around the circumference of the tub, the teeth or projections 22 of the hoop engage the annular projection 20 in such a way as to prevent a return movement of that portion of the rim when the tool is withdrawn. The tool is then inserted successively at adjacent points around the circumference of the rim until a suiiicient portion thereof has been pried upwardly over the projection 20 to permit the removal of the cover. During this operation, the tool or screw driver 24 coacts with the projection 20 which constitutes the lower wall of the groove 20 and to facilitate this action, this projection is preferably extended outwardly to a point flush with or slightly beyond the outer-peripheral surface of the rim 22. It will be apparent that the interlocking engagement described above could be effected by having a continuous annular bead 22 on the lower edge of the rim to pass into interlocking engagement with the groove '20 of the hoop but a continuous annular bead is not well adapted for permitting the ready removal of the cover because, after the tool 24 has been inserted at one point to pry one edge portion of the rim upwardly over the shoulder 20, that portion of the bead tends to return to engagement with the groove when the tool is withdrawn and the use of two or more tools would often be required to effect the removal of the cover. However, by providing the teeth or projections 22, the lower edge of the rim is adapted to grip or interlock with the projection 20 when one portion thereof is pried upwardly, so that the tool 24 may be withdrawn and used at other points for prying upwardly other parts of the rim. The method of forming the projections 22 by compressing portions of the rim together with portions of the previously formed bead 22, causes the lower edge of the rim to have sufiicient strength and stiffness to prevent permanent stretching thereof when it is removed from the tub and thus the same cover and rim may be removed and reapplied several times to or from the same or different tubs. In addition to providing means for facilitating the removal of the rim from the hoop by the use of a single tool applied at successive points around the hoop, the formation of the enlarged transverse corrugations of the body portion of the rim 22 also renders the rim somewhat yieldable circumferentially, which facilitates the action of snapping the rim over the annular shoulder 20 on the hoop. The extension of the lower projection 20 outwardly beyond the outer portion of the rim prevents the accidental removal of the cover by engagement of the rim with any adjacent object. It will be seen that the hoop 20 carried by the vessel 16 has an annular groove 20 therein while the cover 19 has an annular groove 19 therein so that the construction provides two annular grooves, one carried by the vessel and the other by the cover, in combination with an annular metallic rim 22 having one annular corrugated part 22 adapted to be snapped into engagement with one of these grooves and another annular part comprising the sectional bead which is adapted to be snapped into engagement with the other groove.

- Although one form of the improved container and one method of forming it have been shown and described by way of illustration, it will be understood that the invention may take various forms and may be practiced in various ways within the scope of the appended claims.

I claim:

1. The combination in a container, of a nonmetallic vessel, an annular sheet metal hoop surrounding the upper part of said vessel and having an annular recess therein, a non-metallic cover for said vessel, and an annular sheet metal rim attached to said cover and having inwardly extending parts adapted to snap into engagement with said annular recess, said recess having an annular space beneath the lower edge of said rim to permit the insertion of a tool for prying said rim out of engagement with said hoop.

2. The combination in a container, of a vessel having an annular groove therein adjacent its upper end, a sheet metal hoop having an annular part engaging said groove and an annular shoulder projecting outwardly therefrom, a cover for said vessel, and an annular rim attached to said cover and having parts adapted to snap over said shoulder when said cover is forced downwardly onto said vessel.

3. The combination in a container, of a vessel,

ing spaced projections detachably interlocking with said hoop.

4. The combination in a container, of a vessel, a hoop surrounding the upper part of said vessel, a cover for said vessel, and a sheet metal rim attached to said cover and having inturned spaced bead-sections along the lower edge thereof detachably interlocking with said hoop.

5. The combination in a container, of a Vessel, an annular sheet metal hoop surrounding the upper part of said vessel and having spaced annular shoulders extending outwardly therefrom, a cover for said vessel, said vessel having an annular groove engaged by a part of said hoop between said shoulders and an annular rim attached to said cover and having parts adapted to extend inwardly beneath the upper one of said annular shoulders.

6. The combination in a container, of a vessel, an annular sheet metal hoop surrounding the upper part of said vessel and having a pair of spaced annular shoulders projecting outwardly therefrom, the lower one of said shoulders projecting farther than the upper one, a cover for said vessel, and an annular sheet metal rim attached to said cover and having inwardly extending parts at its lower edge to interlock with the under side of the upper one of said annular shoulders.

7. The combination in a container, of a wooden vessel having an upwardly flared annular wall vessel and having an inwardly extending part engaging said groove, said hoop being provided on its outer side with an annular shoulder, a

cover for said vessel, and an annular rim attached to said cover and having inwardly extending spaced teeth to interlock detachably with the underside of said annular shoulder.

8. The combination in a container, of a vessel,

a. cover f orsaidvessel, said. cover and said:.vessel being provided with annular partshaving. annular: groovestherein; and-a sheet metalrim havingannular parts snappedintoengagement with one of said grooves" and other partssnapped into engagement with the other. of said grooves for holding said cover on said vessel.

9. The combination ina. container, of a..cover,v

and a sheet metal rim attached to said cover and having a. depending portion provided" with spaced transverse corrugations and with an in and. forcing downwardly onto said. vessel a cover.

provided with a. depending. transversely corrugated rim having. spaced. inwardly. extending beadasections to interlock. withsaid. shoulder.

11..The. method of forming. a. container rim Whichconsists inproviding. ametal band with an annular. bead along one. edge thereof andthen compressingsaid beadandsaidband at intervals to a form. transverse. corrugations, the intervening,

portions. of" said. head forming projections.

12. The combination in a container, of a wooden vessel. having an upwardly flaring annular. wall. provided withan annular groove adjacentv its upper. end, a metallic hoop. surround ing. said. vessel and having annular corrugations forming. an. annularv recess. on. the outer side thereof and an annular projectionon the inner side thereof said annular projection being snapped. into engagement. with: said groove. when said hoop. is applied to saidvessel, anon-metallic cover. for said vessel, and an annularv metallic.

ma am recess,.a. woodencover for said vessel having an annular groove in its outer edge, and an annular metallic rimhaving an inwardly extending part around its upper edge-snapped into engagement with said-groove, and an inwardly extending part around its lower edge snapped into engagement with said. recess. in said' hoop.

14. A container comprising a vessel having an annular recess. therein adjacent its upper edge, an annular hoop having an inwardly extending bead engaging said recess and having an outwardly extending annular bead, a cover for said vessel, and a rim having a part overlying said cover and having another part extending inwardly beneath said last named head.

15. A container comprising avessel having an annular recess therein adjacent its upper edge,

an. annular sheet metal hoop surrounding said. vessel and having an inwardly extending. annular.

beadformed therein to. engage said recess, said hoop having also an outwardly extending annular bead, one Wall of which is a continuation of the upper portion of said first-named. bead, thereby forming an annular shoulder, a cover seated on the upper edge ofsaid. vessel, and an annular metallic rim having apart overlying said cover and having. an inwardly extending annular flange along its lower edge. coacting with said shoulder.

CHESTER M. MACCHESNEY. 

